Dead Low Tide
by John D. MacDonald
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"Dead Low Tide is an iconic early thriller from John D. MacDonald, the mastermind behind Cape Fear and the Travis McGee novels. On the coast of Florida, a working stiff is wrongfully accused of murdering his boss--and must outwit one of MacDonald's signature villains to save his life. A college graduate and amateur fisherman, Andy McClintock is stuck toiling in the office of a construction company. But when Andy tries to quit, his boss offers him a promotion and a raise--and then promptly show more kills himself with a harpoon gun. At least, that's what it looks like, until the police rule it homicide--with the murder weapon belonging to Andy. The harpoon gun had been stolen out of Andy's garage, and the boss's wife makes the outrageous claim that she and Andy were having an affair. He's been set up. To clear his name, he'll have to find the real killer. But Andy soon discovers that he's up against more than a two-bit thief--he's been targeted by absolute evil, a monster with no compassion for his fellow man." --Page 4 of cover. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Even at this early date (the book was first published in 1953) MacDonald was railing at rampant overdevelopment in Florida. There aren't too many crime stories I can think of in which the phrase "riparian rights" appears.
This is a tale of an adulterous affair between a developer's round-heeled wife and a drifter. It results in several nasty murders, one by speargun and one by nail scissors. The poor schmoo in the middle works for the developer and is accused of one of the murders. In self-defense he has to figure out whodunnit. Along the way he discovers he has a few preconceived notions about life and love which need to be revised.
This is a tale of an adulterous affair between a developer's round-heeled wife and a drifter. It results in several nasty murders, one by speargun and one by nail scissors. The poor schmoo in the middle works for the developer and is accused of one of the murders. In self-defense he has to figure out whodunnit. Along the way he discovers he has a few preconceived notions about life and love which need to be revised.
After writing a few average SF short stories and novels MacDonald turned to Thrillers and never looked back. Thank God for John D. MacDonald. If ever a writer had his finger on the pulse of the human animal it is him.
This was not his best 1950s thriller but it has glimpses of the greatness to come.
This was not his best 1950s thriller but it has glimpses of the greatness to come.
Very compelling page turner from MacDonald. Though dark, perhaps a bit happier than most....
A non Travis McGee MacDonald... but still Florida. Fellow (McClintock) is mixed up in a kind of a trailer park kind of place with another big boned blonde girl that seems to get killed (but gets brought up later all well later). Features an especially amoral weirdo who cuts up the money he has blackmailed for into odd shapes. Rather banal happy ending... (marriage to the blonde!) ... that is not up to McGee standards.
Andrew McClintock works for a very wealthy man with a very sexy wife who asks him to see if he can find out what is bothering her husband. When the husband is murdered, Andrew is suspected of the crime because he was just made a partner in the development project they were working on in Florida. When Andrews girlfriend, Christy, is found drowned in the bay, he is released.
He is searching for who killed his boss and his girlfriend when he finds his boss's wife dead. Again he is a suspect but when his girlfriend turns up alive and points the finger at the real killer, he off the hook again. When the killer escapes custody, he must once more track down the villain and put him away to protect his girlfriend.
Fast paced detective yarn that show more was difficult to put down. show less
He is searching for who killed his boss and his girlfriend when he finds his boss's wife dead. Again he is a suspect but when his girlfriend turns up alive and points the finger at the real killer, he off the hook again. When the killer escapes custody, he must once more track down the villain and put him away to protect his girlfriend.
Fast paced detective yarn that show more was difficult to put down. show less
1953 preview of Carl Hiasson
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Barzun and Taylor's Classics of Crime
93 works; 3 members
Author Information
230+ Works 32,002 Members
John D. MacDonald was born in Sharon, Pennsylvania on July 24, 1916. He received a B.S. from Syracuse University in 1938 and an M.B.A. from the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration in 1939. During World War II, he served in the Army. His first novel, Brass Cupcake, was published in 1950. He wrote about 70 books during his lifetime show more including the Travis McGee series, Condominium, No Deadly Drug, Nothing Can Go Wrong, and A Friendship: The Letters of Dan Rowan and John Dann MacDonald. A Flash of Green was adapted into a movie by the same name and The Excuse was adapted into a movie entitled Cape Fear. He received numerous awards including the Ben Franklin Award for the best American short story in 1955, the Grand Prix de Litterature Policiere for A Key to the Suite in 1964, the Mystery Writers of America's Grand Master Award in 1972, the American Book Award for The Green Ripper in 1980. He died from complications of an earlier heart bypass surgery on December 28, 1986 at the age of 70. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1953
- First words
- I worked pretty late on the estimate.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)I out-roared the water with "Shortnin' Bread" and remembered, sort of all at once, that I was that guy ... that fella shot with luck, that superbly happy jerk named Andrew Hale McClintock.
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Statistics
- Members
- 169
- Popularity
- 193,926
- Reviews
- 6
- Rating
- (3.75)
- Languages
- English, German
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 12
- ASINs
- 10
